FPA Oct 2023

Get the Family Caregiving Support You Need, When You Need it.

At AARP Family Caregiving, we’re here to help you get answers, connect with other family caregivers and find local resources close to home. So you can take care of what matters most.

To learn more, visit aarp.org/caregiving.

Thrifty Thursdays –AARP’s fall financial series

By Mike Festa, state Director aarP Massachusetts

AARP is working to ensure you have a brighter and more secure financial future. We provide free tools and resources to help you plan, work and save for retirement. We’re also fighting to protect and save social security. AARP knows that you work hard and pay into Social Security, so it’s only fair for you to expect to get the money you’ve earned.

This month, AARP Massachusetts is presenting a fall financial series, Thrifty Thursdays. We have virtual events every Thursday this month tackling some aspect of financial planning. Our series covers everything from mapping out a plan to get out of debt, to figuring out a budget, to getting a grasp on social security.

While Social Security was never intended to be the only source of retirement income, it is a core part of Americans’ retirement security and often the only long-term, inflation-proof source of income for many Americans. In fact, 49 percent of Massachusetts residents age 65 and older rely on the program for at least half of

If you’re still deciding about Social Security, take a tailored look at your prospective financial future with the AARP Retirement Calculator. This tool can help you determine how much money you’ll need to live the retirement you want, based on information about your household status,

savings, Social Security income and lifestyle expectations.

AARP has been fighting for 60 years — and will continue to lead the charge — to keep Social Security viable for current and future generations.

Right now, that means fixing the customer service crisis at the Social Security administration.

What’s happening is outrageous; calls aren’t being answered, callers are waiting too long, processing claims is taking forever, and customers are getting incorrect information. Congress needs to act.

For people to enjoy economic security as they age, not only do we need a strong Social Security system but better opportunities to build savings throughout our lives.

Work and Save programs help people plan for retirement. Americans are 15 times more likely to save when they can do so at work. Work and Save makes it easier for businesses to offer employees a way to save out of their regular paychecks, helping them take charge of their financial futures and live independently as they age.

It’s their own money that they can take with them from job to job and rely on in later years for a more secure future. Accounts are voluntary. It’s up to employees to decide if they want to participate, and how much they want to put away. Contributions are made with an automatic deduction from their paychecks.

A strong Social Security system, better access to workplace retirement plans and more incentives to promote saving all play a role in helping individuals live out their lives in financial security.

Join us and learn more about our work in the financial resilience arena. We have more on our Thrifty Thursday series, including registration information on our website aarp.org/ma.

Mike Festa

How Earl Tupper turned one product into a household name

By sharon oliver contriButing Writer

LEOMINSTER - Born in New Hampshire in 1907, Earl Tupper grew up in Central Massachusetts. During the Depression, he struggled to support his family with his tree surgery and landscaping business Tupper Tree Doctors. However, after losing a number of equally struggling clients, he was forced into bankruptcy in 1936. He finally landed a job at a plastic factory in Leominster, where his luck would really change after he developed a groundbreaking product.

Tupper founded Tupperware, an American household products company, in 1942 and developed a bellshaped food container, “the wonderbowl,” with its airtight “burping seal” that was patented in 1949. Tupperware products were soon introduced to various hardware and department stores but were not exactly flying off the shelves.

Tupperware parties and extra income

One day, Tupper received a phone call from Brownie Wise, a Florida single mother and former advice columnist who was running a company called Patio Parties. Wise explained to Tupper how she had extraordinary success selling Tupperware at her home parties. She hosted events dubbed “Poly-T parties” which targeted stay-at-home women, demonstrating how the product worked and its alternative benefits over ceramics and glass.

Impressed by her ability to sell such huge quantities, Tupper invited Wise to visit him in Massachusetts. The meeting resulted in him selling Tupperware exclusively through home parties and making Wise vice president and head of all sales at Tupperware Home Parties Inc. in Florida.

Wise recruited women to host parties of their own thus enabling them to earn a few dollars for themselves. According to Smithsonian Magazine, one of her recruits sold 56 bowls in one week. Wise’s strategy helped Tupperware become one of many multilevel marketing companies like cosmetics giant Avon. Also, according to Smithsonian Magazine, Tupperware party attendees would play games such as tossing a sealed bowl filled with grape juice around the room to demonstrate how leakproof the bowls were.

Unfortunately, the partnership between Tupper and Wise eventually unraveled. Allegedly, Tupper became jealous of all the public attention Wise received, appearing in women’s magazines and business publications. According to the New York Times, Tupper and the company’s board of directors fired Wise and he sold the company to drugstore chain Rexall for $16 million in 1958. Shortly afterwards, Tupper divorced his wife, gave up his U.S. citizenship to avoid paying taxes and bought an island off the coast of Costa Rica.

Pandemic boosted slumping sales

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the share of U.S. women in the labor force shot from 34% in 1950 to 60% in 2000. More and more women joining the workforce meant fewer housewives and diminishing interest in hosting parties or selling the containers. Tupperware strug-

gled to stay in business but when the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic hit, the company experienced a boost in sales as people were working from home and cooked more.

However, the company’s shares lost almost half their value and closed at $1.23 on April 10, 2023, even though the company warned investors it could go out of business.

Tupper’s design ideas are still a heavy influence in the plastic industry as evident by other brands of food containers stocked in stores. Tupper donated 428 acres of land in Smithfield, Rhode Island, to his alma mater, Bryant College (now named Bryant University) in 1969. Towards the end of his life, he continued to try his hand at inventing gadgets and other devices, carrying little pads of paper in his shirt pocket to scribble down ideas for new inventions. His sons tell stories of their father jotting notes about better hospital gurneys, having devised a round stove, and a clothes-washing exercise cylinder for the traveling salesperson. Earl Tupper died in Costa Rica in 1983, but his iconic invention lives on in millions of kitchens around the world.

Tupperware home parties were the main sales channel for the popular kitchen storage product during the 1950s and 1960s.

Using food to ‘repair the world’ Newton caterer cooks up support for all

By Matt roBinson contriButing Writer

NEWTON – Growing up in the South in the middle of the 20th century, Jeanie Gruber learned a lot about hospitality and about how food can support and sustain a community.

As the granddaughter of her community’s rabbi, she also learned a good deal about the principle of tikkun olam, which has to do with every human being’s responsibility to do what they can to repair the world. And now she is using food as a way to support Boston’s homeless community.

Early affinity for helping others

“I’ve always loved people since I was very little,” Gruber recalled, noting a special affinity for the elderly, handicapped, and other people who were often at risk of “feeling lonely or left out.”

As she grew up, Gruber even took vocational tests to see if service was to be her life’s work.

“Sometimes I wished I wanted to do something other than helping others,” she admitted, “but [service] was all that showed up!”

Career as therapist came first

Starting her career as a therapist, Gruber got to know and support people at profoundly deep levels and in meaningful ways.

“I liked listening to people’s problems,” she explained. “I didn’t give a lot of advice; I mainly listened. And I knew I wanted to officially be able to listen, and hoped to help others.”

These days, in her two home bases of Newton and New Orleans, Gruber shares her sense of Southern hospitality. She also uses her knack for being a supportive listener with friends, neighbors, and many who often do not receive such support and treatment from others.

Catering launched cooking business

Though service and support were clearly her callings, Gruber found other ways to manifest it in places outside of her therapy practice, including the kitchen. Though she had long cooked for herself and her family, Gruber’s olfactory outreach soon extended into a commissary and catering company that was originally called Southern Comfort Cooking and now is known simply as Miss Jeanies Catering Company.

“I actually liked cooking just for the experience of bringing amazing ingredients together in a hopefully tasty dish that people enjoyed,” she said. “I loved creating what would feel good to the other. After all, it was not my party―it was theirs!”

Making each menu from scratch (instead of offering a set of options from which her clients could pick and choose), Gruber continued to use food as a way to connect with and support

others on their terms.

“I would listen and explore what was going to make their party ‘them,’” she reasoned, recalling her parallel passion for listening and coming to understand other people. “My catering company attempts to manifest the individuality and dignity of each client or honored person.”

Serving

the homeless

These ongoing desires to serve the stomach and soul and to use faith and food to repair the world and serve the underserved have most recently culminated in a new initiative called The WISHDISH Project (https://www. thewishdishproject.com).

Wish Dish not only helps feed members of the homeless community, but offers them Gruber’s freshly-made renditions of their own favorite family recipes.

“Wish Dish is a perfect extension of what my approach had been to catering already for 20 years,” Gruber maintained, noting how each Wish Dish is prepared at the behest of one individual member of the homeless community and then shared with the rest of their community.

“Many homeless people do not feel noticed or special in any way,” Gruber observed. “They feel they are a number, one of the masses…[and] many are separated from their families. It feels so good to them to feel their preferences are taken seriously!”

In order to share the Wish Dish model, Gruber is working on a cookbook and is reaching out to other homeless supporters to bring new wishes and dishes to others in need.

“I would love to open other projects in Boston and other cities throughout the country,” she said, inviting people to reach out with ideas.

Farm project coming next

Speaking of reaching out, Gruber’s latest community-building offering is Wonder Root Farm, a gathering place in Stow, that, she said, is intended as a site and source of “purposeful repurposing” (using what you have to make what you want). It will soon be hosting classes, workshops, and experiences related to food insecurity and waste, community and environmental support systems, and, of course, cooking.

“Wish Dish and the farm are meant to further the awareness of food rescue and applications for making certain we all have ‘enough,’” Gruber declared. “It is where all I have done and all that matters to me most will come together!”

Jeanie Gruber’s latest project is Wonder Root Farm in Stow, which will host classes and workshops related to cooking, food insecurity and waste, and community and environmental support systems.

IRS launches ambitious plan to improve customer service

By DeBBie sPingarn contriButing Writer

REGION - When Teresa Fern, 52, of Norfolk had her Social Security number stolen, the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) was aware but unable to help. Though she says she was easily able to reach them, no help was offered to remedy her tax situation. While identity theft is an extreme but increasingly common situation, the IRS has reputedly had poor customer service for a long time, which worsened during the pandemic years, when staffing issues impacted the government agency, as well as critical issues with funding. For older people who may not be tech- or tax-savvy and want to talk to someone knowledgeable, this can lead to increased frustration when a need to contact the IRS arises.

A variety of improvements

According to IRS media relations spokesman Anthony Burke, the IRS recently issued a press release in April based on written testimony from Daniel Werfel, the Commissioner of the IRS, given before the Senate Finance Committee. The 10-page release outlines many major improvements the

IRS is currently implementing. These include improving phone service for customers by hiring more than 5,000 additional customer service reps for toll-free lines and hiring hundreds of new employees for in-person assistance. There will also be better access to electronically-filed and scanned returns, easier responses to IRS notices for consumers, and faster refunds on amended returns via direct deposit rather than waiting for delivery of a paper refund check.

The release added that, “The IRA legislation (Inflation Reduction Act of 2022) provides the IRS with a unique opportunity to transform our agency and the taxpayer experience over the next decade.”

IRS phone customer service is difficult, though Maria Levin, a Norwood CPA, said she is able to reach someone at the agency if she calls at 7 a.m. According to the press release, “Taxpayer research shows that phone service is a preferred channel of contacting the federal agency and inadequate phone service causes taxpayers to increase usage of other service channels, such as paper correspondence, so keeping phone level of service high will reduce incoming paper inventory.”

Free help for tax prep

Older taxpayers needing tax preparation services can get free help at many senior centers or councils on aging around the state. In Norwood, senior center director Kerri McCarthy said her agency uses the AARP Tax Assistance program. Taxpayers who need to contact the IRS directly cannot do so via a tax prep service but need to obtain an appointment for in-person help at one of four centers in Massachusetts: Boston (at the JFK Federal Building), Brockton (120 Liberty Street), Woburn (400 Trade Center Drive) and Worcester (120 Front Street).

Electronic filing requires identity verification

The days of filing paper tax returns are fast disappearing, even for individuals not filing with an accountant or tax prep service. The IRS, in contrast to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a strict identity-verifying entity. Often, though, when individuals change addresses frequently and fail to inform the IRS of address changes, a PIN number mailed to the person’s current address is needed to verify identity and continue with elec-

tronic filing. Without identity verification, electronic filing is not possible and may persist through the lifetime of the taxpayer.

Don’t delay claiming refunds

Tax-filing issues can be complicated and time-consuming. With such strict identify verification, individuals like Teresa Fern may be unable to get help from the IRS with identity theft. Police are unable to be involved. This often requires legal help that can take years to come to a conclusion. 2019 was a difficult year as those returns came due during the pandemic.

Another press release says that as of this past July, there were $1.5 billion in refunds owed to taxpayers. It adds that, “Under the law, taxpayers have three years to file and claim tax refunds. If they don’t claim within three years, the money becomes the property of the U.S. Treasury.”

Let’s hope the improved customer service planned by the IRS will help taxpayers, as the agency stated, “be able to seamlessly interact with the agency in ways that work best for them on the phone, in-person and online.”

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Something for everyone at The Hanover Theatre

By evan Walsh contriButing Writer

WORCESTER – In September, members of the community celebrated the launch of The Hanover Theatre & Conservatory for the Performing Arts’ 15th Anniversary Season at their Season Kick Off and Plaza Party. The celebration – which featured live music, a world premier of a mini documentary about the founders, an open house, and much, much more –capped 15 years of “Broadway, music, and more.”

“It’s been exciting to see us really grow,” said Vice President of Communications Lisa Condit, who has worked at the theatre since before its grand opening on March 14, 2008. “We wouldn’t have been able to grow if it weren’t for the support of so many people at every level just rolling up their sleeves and making it happen. This organization has provided amazing opportunities and continues to expand its reach and impact on our community.”

Although the anniversary celebration was exciting, the best is yet to come for The Hanover Theatre (THT).

The theatre is now gearing up for their Broadway season.

Broadway in Worcester

From November to May, The Hanover Theatre will welcome six Broadway productions, including “Pretty Woman” (November 10-12), “Beetlejuice” (January 2-7), “My Fair Lady” (February 16-18), “Little Women” (March 22-24), “Jagged Little Pill”

(April 5-7), and “To Kill A Mockingbird” (May 3-5).

“Worcester has been hungry for Broadway tours. We’re pleased to bring all new shows that have never come to Worcester as part of our Broadway Series this year. They’re really big titles,” said Condit.

Attracting Broadway shows is one highly competitive process, but the theatre’s subscribers make it possible to bring some of the world’s top talent to Worcester.

“Our subscribers help us take the risk to bring these national Broadway tours to Worcester,” Condit said. “They’re loyal. They recognize the value of setting aside time in advance for the arts and to make memories with the people that are important to them. It’s a fantastic value. Our supporters stuck with us through the pandemic; we maintained a large number of our subscribers, even when there wasn’t any theatre.”

The theatre’s subscribers are guaranteed their seats for the Broadway productions. The Hanover Theatre also offers generous discounts to local college students.

To subscribe – or to get more information – visit TheHanoverTheatre.org or call (877) 571-7469.

Holidays at The Hanover Theatre

The Hanover Theatre also presents two annual holiday productions.

“The Nutcracker” will be held Thanksgiving Weekend, from November 24 to 26. The show, which features a set design by an internationally recognized designer, “competes with Boston Ballet’s Nutcracker,” Condit said.

The theatre’s production of “A Christmas Carol” (December 16-23) features the Mighty Wurlitzer organ during both the pre-show and throughout the show. The Mighty Wurlitzer is “recognized as one of the cultural jewels of Worcester,” and includes 2,495 pipes that can replicate the sounds of an entire symphony orchestra.

“It’s a fantastic, underappreciated instrument,” Condit said.

Condit also described the special atmosphere in the theatre prior to performances.

“There is always a sense of excitement and anticipation and joy of being here, even when people aren’t sure what they’re about to see. There’s a sense of discovery — there’s shared joy in that discovery. The atmosphere is friendly, accommodating, and welcoming.”

Community programming

The Hanover Theatre is also committed to giving back to the community. This summer, the theatre presented a series of free concerts on the new outdoor Bank of America stage in the new Francis R. Carroll Plaza directly in front of the building and looks forward to presenting many more community events in the future. “I’m excited for us to have the opportunity to do additional programming in our community,” said Condit.

“In addition to the world-class shows, comedians, and concerts that come here, we recently held our thirdin-our-history naturalization ceremony on our main stage,” Condit explained. “We had 752 people taking the oath and becoming citizens. It’s a special experience for all who come to the theatre.”

Besides the high-quality programming and exceptional arts training students receive at THT’s conservatory, THT Repertory produces professional theatre for the JMAC’s BrickBox Theater, just steps away. Together with the community events, there’s truly a way for all to enjoy and access The Hanover Theatre.

“There is something for everyone in what we offer throughout the season. I can find something in our season that would appeal to each one of my friends, family, and associates,” Condit said.

The Hanover Theatre holiday season offerings include “A Christmas Carol” from December 16-23.

Ken Bennett leads hikes through Northborough

By tyler charPentier contriButing Writer

NORTHBOROUGH - Ken Bennett and his group of 10 to 20 walkers take to the trails every Thursday for weekly hikes through Northborough.

Bennett has been hosting these hikes since 2020.

There are two hiking seasons per year: the fall season is held from September through November, and spring season from April into late June.

The hikers usually consist of members of the Northborough Senior Center but all ages are welcome and encouraged to join.

“I think the best benefit of doing these hikes is getting to meet new people. Of course it’s a good form of exercise but it’s also a way to put yourself out there and make new friends,” said Bennett.

Recreation Director Allison Lane has been assisting in promoting Bennett’s hikes through the town’s “Be Well Northborough” program.

Be Well Northborough uses funds from the American Rescue Plan Act and puts them towards encouraging community members to get outside and better their mental health after the

COVID-19 pandemic.

“If you’re talking about mental health and COVID-19 recovery, hiking is the perfect activity. It gets you outside and gives participants the ability to meet other people. During the COVID-19 pandemic you had to stay away from other people; we’re trying to bring people back together ” said Lane.

Bennett’s two favorite locations are the unnamed trails in the Lester Ross

Ken Bennett stands in front of the Northborough Senior Center. Bennett leads weekly hikes throughout town.

Dam area on Route 62 in Berlin and the McGrail trail. The McGrail trail takes hikers to the McGrail Farm Property located near Horseshoe Pond in Berlin.

This specific trail has a personal connection to Bennett as it borders his childhood home.

On the McGrail trail, the stone wall that divided Bennetts’ property from the farm is still intact. There’s a 25-acre tract of land that he and his family would

farm for hay and corn harvests.

Bennett and the hikers recently just visited the McGrail trail as a memorial for Donald Haitsma, who died last year.

Haitsma worked and grew up on the McGrail dairy farm with his stepbrother Allen Bezanson when they were both in high school. The two stepbrothers previously picked up milk from Bennett’s father then returned to their dairy farm to pasteurize and bottle it. Afterward, they traveled through Marlborough and Northborough to sell their bottles of milk.

The barn on the dairy farm has since been demolished, but the car used to deliver their milk is still parked on the trail.

Bennett hosted his final hike of this spring season on June 22 at Berberian’s Farm. The farm’s owner Glen Berberian gave an in-depth tour and spoke about the history of the farm to the hikers.

Bennett’s upcoming fall season will be starting again this September and he hopes for another successful round of historic hikes.

Participants are asked to meet with Bennett at the Northborough Senior Center at 10 a.m. on Thursdays where they then carpool to the designated trail of that week.

PHOTO/TYLER CHARPENTIER

Medford woman was victim of

most infamous unsolved murders

By Brett Peruzzi Managing eDitor

MEDFORD – In January of 1947, a 22-year-old woman who had moved from this Boston-area city with the hope of becoming a movie actress in Los Angeles achieved a very different kind of fame and immortality.

A turbulent life

Elizabeth Short, born in Boston’s Hyde Park neighborhood and raised in nearby Medford, was found murdered in a vacant lot in Los Angeles on January 15, 1947. The gruesomeness of her body’s condition―disemboweled and cut in half, and drained of blood, horrified onlookers, police, and reporters. The case became dubbed The Black Dahlia Murder in local newspapers, based on Short’s striking beauty, black hair, and supposed penchant for sheer black clothes and the movie “The Blue Dahlia,” a film noir released in 1946. The media coverage spread coast-to-coast and continued off-and-on for years. More than 75 years later, the murder remains legally unsolved, the oldest “cold

case” in the Los Angeles Police Department’s history.

Short dropped out of Medford High School in her sophomore year. In 1942

at age 18 she moved to southern California to live with her father, who had abandoned his family in Massachusetts 12 years earlier after losing most of his money in the 1929 stock market crash. Short’s life had been turbulent for years prior to her death. Within a few months after arriving in California, she left her father’s home after numerous arguments with him.

She worked various jobs, including one at a nearby air force base, and as a waitress, and reportedly was in an abusive live-in relationship with an Army Air Force sergeant. She was later arrested in Santa Barbara for drinking in a bar while she was still underage. Short was later supposedly engaged to a major in the Army Air Force, but he died in a plane crash before the marriage could take place. While Short had been enamored of movies since she was a child and had talked about her desire to become a movie actress, there is no indication she ever had any professional acting roles.

Enormous media attention

Due partially to the sensational and sustained coverage the murder received in the press as the police investigation continued, more than 50 confessions were received from often mentally unbalanced people apparently eager to gain notoriety. Hundreds of other suspects were investigated. None panned out and the suspect remained at large. In 1950 a Los Angeles doctor, George Hodel, became a prime suspect and was also suspected in another murder, but he was never charged.

Over the decades, more than 25 movies have been made about or influenced by the Black Dahlia murder. One of the most recent and probably best-known is director Brian De Palma’s 2006 film “The Black Dahlia,” which starred Josh Hartnett, Aaron Eckhart, and Scarlet Johansson. The number of books about the topic is at least 30, and countless magazine and newspaper articles have been written as well.

And her hometown has not forgotten Elizabeth Short either. Exactly thirty years ago, in 1993, the city of Medford’s historical society placed a large stone with a plaque dedicated to her on Salem Street, where she lived as a child.

The public fascination with this horrible crime appears to have no end. Today, three-quarters of a century after Short’s tragic demise, the Los Angeles Police Department still gets telephone calls about the case.

Josephine L. Veglia, Esq.

The 1947 murder in Los Angeles of Elizabeth Short, dubbed “The Black Dahlia,” still remains legally unsolved.

Elizabeth’s Short’s hometown of Medford created a memorial to her life in 1993.

With a little help from our friends

By Bill levine contriButing Writer

REGION - My childhood friend’s 70th birthday party was basically a boys’ night out at his house. Our octet of septuagenarian buddies picnicked at the kitchen table surrounded by the Celtics game on two large screens. We then convened to the sofas for the whimsical part of the evening, a sharing of our ancient wisdom. This being a fun-loving rather than Socratic crowd, wisdom-sharing evolved into more of a roast. A friend with a DJ personality read funny wisdom snippets from the internet, and another jabbed the birthday boy with Don Rickles-style quips.

Friends to the rescue

Then it was my turn to add a little sobriety to the proceedings by imparting a lesson I learned 57 years ago on the junior high basketball courts. I guess I would call my contribution, it’s okay to rely on a little help from our friends, to paraphrase The Beatles. Indeed, in eighth grade I was surprisingly cut from the JV junior high team, only to be reinstated a couple of days later, based on a petition signed by friends who had made the cut. In part, my friends dared

to petition because they saw me use my height to good advantage during the fall. Coach H. bought the testimonials of my friends that my ability, though clumsily displayed, was still ability. I was reinstated on the JV squad which ultimately led to a Cinderella six-week apex of my adolescence the following winter, as a starter on our junior high’s championship varsity team.

I hesitated endorsing my friends’ proposed petition. Sure, I was devastated when my name was not on the madethe-team list, but I of course could have told them to forget it. Indeed, I had the

inclination that this would be an embarrassment to me as a sore loser since “cut” means “cut.” But the fact that my basketball peers thought my being cut was outrageous gave me the confidence to greenlight the petition.

In ninth grade, I parlayed the help from my friends into a peak adolescent event that still resonates with me. The sweet, indelible memory of the sixweek season revolved around sharing the experience of winning the city junior high school championship with my friends, and enjoying a blessed reprieve from my athletic mediocrity.

But this gift of my buddies’ middle-school petition didn’t boost me into a reflexive altruist who was always attuned to Hallmark card-level helping opportunities, so it took 50 years for me to recognize a valuable helping opportunity.

A favor returned

In June of 2016, the hiring manager finished up our video interview by inviting me up for in-person visit to meet the team. There was no “I’ll get back to you” reply. For the first time in two years of job searching, I was not too old or too technically outdated. This hiring manager was selling the job to me in-

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stead of the other way around. He could envision me fitting in perfectly with his team of gray-haired mainframe/COBOL staff as a remote programmer. In addition, the business side was about producing commissions for financial product agents, my IT bailiwick for 30 years. All I had to do was drive 70 miles to Concord, New Hampshire, meet the guys, and accept a job offer. Simple, right? Not really. The two roads diverged at that point, and I at 65 and pensioned, went down the retirement path.

But my good friend Lee was not retired and was looking for a job. He and I had worked together in the agent commission IT group of another company for over 25 years, creating very similar resumes. He would be a shoo-in for the New Hampshire job. I excitedly called Lee and informed him of the job opportunity that seemed to be a career match. He applied for the job and had an enjoyable remote work experience for the next five years. I was delighted to late in life finally help a friend out big-time. More importantly, I have recently realized that I also did a pay-itforward deed to honor the scribbled names written on notebook paper that was handed in to a coach 57 years ago.

Bill Levine with his friend Lee, to whom he passed on a job opportunity that was a perfect match for him.

Where to eat, stay, and play for a getaway at Patriot Place

By sanDi Barrett contriButing Writer

FOXBOROUGH - Patriot Place offers the next wave in sporting venues. More than simply a stadium for the New England Patriots and the New England Revolution, Patriot Place is a destination unto itself. When you are looking for a local spot for an overnight getaway, girls weekend, or family reunion, the entertainment, dining, and shopping options at Patriot Place will keep you busy all day and all night long.

Where to play

A wide variety of entertainment options at Patriot Place offer unique experiences.

The Patriots Hall Of Fame is one of the highlights. With interactive games and Pats memorabilia, football fans will love poring over the greatest Patriots highlights. Stand in the huddle with TB12 calling the play, test your vertical jump against Devin McCourty’s, and pick up a few tips from Coach Belichick’s “Belistrator.”

The entertainment venues have some exciting offerings. The Comedy Scene will have you in stitches with live shows. For hands-on gaming, grab

a seat at one of the 100 gaming stations at Helix eSports. Intrepid adventure seekers will love flying through the indoor skydiving venue, Freedom Wind Tunnel (opening soon). The Showcase Cinema De Lux is the spot for viewing all the must-see movies. Splitsville Luxury Lanes and Topgolf Swing Suite offer some active entertainment for the

more competitive crowd.

Outdoor enthusiasts will love wandering through Bass Pro Shops eyeing all the outdoor toys. Fishing, boating, hunting, camping―they have it all. Behind Bass Pro Shops is the Nature Trail and Ocean Spray Cranberry Bog. The half-mile nature trail meanders through a seven-acre bog.

Along the walk are educational signs explaining the history of the bog and its ecosystem.

Late night escapade options include some honky tonk vibes at Six String Grill & Stage, a trip to Bourbon Street at Fat Tuesday, a nightcap at The Harp, or a pint at a local favorite― Wormtown Brewery.

The Renaissance Boston Patriot Place Hotel has an outdoor patio with a perfect view of Gillette Stadium.

The Patriots Hall Of Fame is one of the highlights at Patriot Place.

Where to eat

The mix of dining options at Patriot Place will keep you well-fed and happy. They have all the foodie cravings covered.

Fine dining at Twenty8 Food & Spirits features classic American cuisine. Davio’s Northern Italian Steakhouse and Saga Hibachi Steakhouse & Sushi Bar also offer great gourmet dining options.

If you want something more casual, go to Tavolino for pizza, Achilito’s Taqueria for bold Mexican flavors, Bar Louie for the ultimate gastro pub grub, or Skipjack’s for a variety of seafood selections.

Midday sweet treats include Cupcake Charlie’s for a gourmet cupcake, decadent Crumbl Cookies, and Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt.

Where to stay

Two hotels anchor the activities at Patriot Place. With views of Gillette Stadium, comfy rooms, and onsite breakfast options, you can enjoy your relaxing Patriot Place experience knowing you don’t have to face a latenight drive home.

The Renaissance Boston Patriot Place Hotel is a luxurious option with an indoor pool, inviting lobby, onsite restaurant and bar, and an outdoor pa-

HOME SWEET HOME

Home Sweet Home

“I love my home. I’m getting older. I want to be financially independent and prepared. I’m anxious about my options. I don’t want to be sold.”

These are the most common responses when discussing reverse mortgages. In fact, few people are eager to move from where they live. Studies have shown that 90 percent of adults over the age of 65 would prefer to stay in their current homes as they age.

In recent years there has been a powerful trend across the U.S. called “aging in place.” Aging in place is “the ability to live in one’s own home safely, have access to money for current and future needs, and maintain a good quality of life for the rest of your life”.

Life Happens and it costs money!

As you grow older you may face the challenge of being able to afford to continue to live in your own home. The top financial stress points include:

• Not having enough money every month

• Ongoing mortgage or home-equity line payments

• Recurring and unexpected health expenses

• Credit card bills

Fine dining at Twenty8 Food & Spirits fuels you up with tasty pre-game meals.

tio with a perfect view of Gillette Stadium.

Another great hotel is the Hilton Garden Inn Foxborough Patriot Place. Also offering an indoor pool and onsite restaurant, the Hilton is pet-friendly. You can bring your favorite fur baby along for the adventure.

Staycation at Patriot Place

One of the best ways to enjoy a Patriots game, Revs match, or a must-see concert is stay over at Patriot Place. Arrive before the event, park at your hotel, find a great spot to people-watch, and enjoy delicious pre-game dining. Settle in for an exciting event without worrying if you need to leave early to beat the traffic. Simply walk across the parking lot to your luxurious room where you can relax and avoid the parking lot hustle.

Both the Renaissance Boston Patriot Place Hotel and the Hilton Garden Inn Foxboro offer fans the ultimate game day experience. Book an overnight stay game package that includes two lower-level tickets to the game, breakfast, and parking. To reserve your hotel/ticket package, enter the game day in the online reservation form and one of the room options will be the package if available.

• Desired home repairs

• Loss of a loved one

• Or, just trying to enjoy life a bit more.

Without a plan, your quality of life may diminish or be forced to sell your home.

What are the top advantages of a reverse mortgage?

The most common uses of reverse mortgages are:

• Access to tax free cash when needed

• NO monthly mortgage payment (note- you are responsible for real estate taxes, insurance, and other loan guidelines)

• A monthly check for life

• A reverse mortgage line of credit

• Having fun Take Action!

A great place to start is to get your free “How to Use Your Home to Stay at Home.” This is the official 36- page reverse mortgage consumer booklet approved by the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development and published by the National Council on Aging.

Alain Valles

Reverse Mortgage Specialist

781-724-6221

To receive your free copy, please call me at (781) 724-6221 or email me at alainvalles@ gmail.com I am also available to evaluate your specific situation, answer your questions, and calculate how much money is available to you.

Alain Valles was the first designated Certified Reverse Mortgage Professional in New England. He obtained a Master of Science from the M.I.T. Center for Real Estate, an MBA from the Wharton School, and graduated summa cum laude from UMass Amherst. He is the senior reverse mortgage loan officer MLO#7946 at Powerhouse Funding Corp. NMLS #1740551. He can arrange but does not make loans. Alain can be reached directly at (781) 7246221 or by email at alainvalles@gmail.com

A half-mile nature trail at Patriot Place meanders through a sevenacre bog with educational signs explaining the history of the bog and its ecosystem.

I love my home. I love my independence. I love my reverse mortgage.

By nance eBert contriButing Writer

REGION – Being young and in love, many people overlook things that can stress a healthy relationship. Marrying later in life, after the age of fifty and beyond, does have many benefits but at times can also have some additional challenges.

A different focus

In your twenties and thirties, people are typically focused on their careers. A lot of time is spent with each other, friends and family. Once the added responsibility of children enters the dynamic, there can be added tension. Money or lack thereof, can be a big source of contention at any age. One spouse might earn a higher wage than their partner, which can hurt some relationships.

People fall in love all the time. They each bring their own set of beliefs, traditions and manners in which they were raised. Parenting newborns or small toddlers is exhausting and if one parent is staying at home to raise the children, resentment may form. One of the incomes may be lost or decreased, which can place a financial strain on a marriage.

Life changes

After a divorce or death, many older people miss the companionship of being married. When given a second chance, finding love again is often such a blessing. It’s a gift to be able to share your life with someone else who holds similar values and enjoys many of the things you enjoy.

“One thing that is unique about marrying at an older age is that you are not first developing your career and your children are grown up, sometimes with children of their own,” said Dr. Alan Kulberg of Pittsfield. “You are able to pursue your interests as a cou-

ple and spend time with family or by yourselves.”

Both Kulberg and his wife, Joanie Rooks, were married previously. When they got married in 2014, she was 53, and he was 64. While he is retired, Joanie still teaches, but he wishes she would retire as well so they could spend more time together.

“Some families will go through transitions with blending but ours has been smooth,” Kulberg noted. “Together, we have six grandchildren, four on Joanie’s side and two on mine. There is no differentiation between whose side they are from. They are simply ours, who we love unconditionally and, with our children, are a very important and gratifying part of our lives.“

Legal factors

When couples form a union at an older age, there are important legal factors to take into consideration like assets, an updated will, and perhaps even creating a prenuptial agreement that specifically details what hap-

pens to your property and assets in the event of death.

“Overall planning is quite important when older couples marry,” said attorney Jeneen M. Moran of Millbury. “There are assets to consider and I highly recommend to my clients that they should have a prenuptial agreement in place well before an anticipated union. There should also be plenty of time to review it with their respected counsel so there does not appear to be any duress or coercion in signing it.”

“In addition, I recommend updating wills once you are married to make sure it reflects your new estate plan,” Moran explained. “You might still decide to leave property to your children, or you might decide that you would prefer to leave it to your new spouse.”

If each member of a married older couple owns their home, it is important to discuss what will be done with the property or properties. How will the profits be divided? Will one or both properties be sold?

There are many things to be mindful of when marrying at an older age. Finding love for the first or second time is truly a gift. While there might be some challenges, the benefits are great.

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Marrying later in life does have many benefits but at times can also have some additional challenges.

Home is where the heart is

By Marianne Delorey, Ph.D.

WhenI was in my twenties, I worked as a Resident Assistant at a Japanese women’s college in Boston. It was a fascinating glimpse into a very different culture. I learned quite a bit, but one of the more interesting experiences I took with me was how it felt to be a minority.

I remember the first time I looked around at a sea of women and realized how much I stood out. My body type, my light hair, and my overall swagger made it clear I was different and although I was in my own country, I felt like I needed to be aware of not sticking out too much. I felt at home and not at home at the same time. It is a feeling I cannot easily forget. Last week, I had a resident come visit with me. This person was struggling and wanted to ask for a transfer to another housing site because they felt they did not belong. The main reason for feeling this way was because they

are Black in a predominantly white community. This person felt like they could not be themselves – the community wasn’t for right for them and they would feel more at home among others like them.

You know what I did not say? That they shouldn’t feel that way. That they needed to make their own community. That the color of their neighbors’ skin shouldn’t matter. These statements are all (to varying degrees) gaslighting and disempowering and frankly not even a little helpful to someone who was in crisis.

I did point out that this person had friends here and to this outside observer, they certainly seemed to have a community. I did suggest they could bring friends, family, or their church group here more often to bring community in since it was getting hard for them to get out. And I did say that their sense of belonging was important and that I would support whatever felt right.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that decades of addressing redlining hasn’t made a huge difference. Worcester, like many cities, is still very segregated by poverty and race. People of color predominantly live in the inner cities and white folks live in the almost suburban peripheries. We, as affordable housing providers, own property that can (and do) house people of all colors and races. But we struggle to entice people to cross neighborhood lines. Why would people move farther from their church, the grocery stores that sell their specialty items, and their support networks? Why would they move into a community where they feel like an outsider? And who are we to tell them they shouldn’t feel this way?

So maybe we should build more housing where lower income people live. But isn’t that also the problem? Doing so perpetuates segregated neighborhoods. There must be more than one answer and frankly, I don’t have it.

SUPER CROSSWORD PUZZLE

While I long for a day when this is a non-issue, perhaps all we can do now is to address the human emotion behind home and community. My resident did not feel a sense of belonging. Perhaps we need to do a better job making sure people are viewed as a whole person — with religious, cultural, and day-to-day likes and dislikes that we need to bring into the community to make them feel more at home. Perhaps we need to listen with our hearts instead of telling people they need to move or not move to another place because they are the problem.

Knowing that my resident was a prayerful person, I offered to pray together. While that was not a complete cure, I met my resident in their space, and that helped. This person felt better after our talk and a good long visit with other residents.

Perhaps we need to open our hearts as well as our front doors to everyone. We all have a home. The luckiest among us can feel at home almost anywhere. Let’s help each other feel that way.

Marianne Delorey, Ph.D. is the Executive Director of Colony Retirement Homes. She can be reached at 508755-0444 or delorey@colonyretirement.com and www.colonyretirementhomes.com.

SCARE TACTICS

Answers on page 18

The nail that sticks up will be hammered down.

— Japanese expression

Visiting America’s Stonehenge in southern New Hampshire

By sanDi Barrett contriButing Writer

SALEM, N.H. – America’s Stonehenge in Salem, New Hampshire, is an ancient stone village filled with precisely placed boulders reminiscent of England’s Stonehenge. The site is over 4,000 years old and is a collection of manmade chambers, ceremonial spots, and celestial markings. This amazing ruin is more than a simple hike through the woods, it is a journey through history.

The site was originally named Mystery Hill Caves but in 1982 was changed to America’s Stonehenge to reflect the truer meaning of the stone structures. The half-mile hike takes about one to one-and-a-half hours when following along on the audio tour accessed through the America’s Stonehenge app.

Stone structures

The purpose of many of the stone structures is still a mystery. Scientists have named and cataloged the stone formations based on location, orien-

tation, and structural details.

The Watch House located outside the main site is a good example. Its purpose is unclear, however, it is perfectly aligned with the sunrise of February 1, the ancient pagan holiday Imbolc honoring the returning sun god.

Astronomical trail

The astronomical significance of

the stone layouts is evident as you progress through the site. Reminiscent of the Wiltshire, England Stonehenge, it is an astronomical calendar and accurate at marking annual solar and lunar events. Fascinatingly, if you draw a line from the viewing platform through the Summer Solstice Sunrise stone it will go directly through one of the trilithons (the classic two vertical stones

The Grooved Table was most likely used for ceremonial purposes.

supporting a horizontal lintel) at England’s Stonehenge.

From the Astronomical Viewing Platform, believed to originally have stone structures imperative to the calendar’s use, you are in the center of a panoramic layout of the astronomical calendar. Sunrise and sunset alignments, including the Summer Solstice Sunrise Stone, Winter Solstice Sunset,

Evil plastic thingies and other modern conveniences

By Janice linDsay contriButing Writer

Whenfaced with a major life crisis, most of us rally. We face it, figure out what to do, and get on with it.

It’s the little things that drive us cuckoo.

I bought a plush fleece baby blanket as a gift for a friend. I wanted to give it unwrapped, laundered, and ready for baby.

“Unwrapped.” Right.

The super-soft white blanket with its perky pattern of yellow and blue guitars had hung, neatly folded, from a hanger on the store rack. The folds were held together by an army of those evil little plastic thingies. You know what thingies I mean. The

thingy is a short, thin, clear plastic stick, in this case about a half-inch long, each end shaped like a T.

The wicked little gizmos often hold new socks together. They attach tags to new garments. They must be removed, both ends and the middle, or their sharp points stab you when you wear your new garment. If you launder the garment first and don’t get every piece out, thingies end up, unseen, in your washing machine.

Each end of the thingy fits tightly against the fabric. If you try to thread one of the T-heads through the fabric to remove the thingy whole, you risk damaging the fabric. If you cut the head off, you risk cutting the fabric, especially if it’s soft and plushy. If you manage to cut one T-head off safely, its opposite T-head is trapped inside the garment. Or it goes flying off and you will never find it until you hear it clattering inside the vacuum cleaner or the cat tries to eat it.

For the blanket, I snipped the head off each outward-facing T, holding the blanket above the kitch-

en table. I counted the heads as I cut them, then shook the blanket until opposite ends fell out. I smoothed the blanket with my fingers, feeling for vicious little points, until I had an equal number of cut heads and fallen heads, all the time imagining how wisely I could have spent these minutes otherwise for the greater good of humankind or at least myself.

Nefarious T-thingies are not the only modern convenience that can drive us cuckoo.

How about those zip-top plastic bags that don’t? “Tear here” to open. Fail. Cut with scissors. Try to open the zip part. Fail. Pry open with table knife. Finally, open. Take the contents you need. Zip to close. Can you get the zipper halves to click together?

And cardboard cartons — maybe for pasta, or cookies — with a perforated rectangle near the top on one side. “Push here to open.” Push. Fail. Fetch a knife. Stab perforation.

Then there’s hair conditioner too thick to flow through the pouring spout of its own bottle.

And those envelopes where you fold one edge and tear it off, fold the opposite edge and tear it off, fold the top edge and tear it off, a nuisance even when they tear evenly, which they don’t.

And those tiny flat square plastic tags with two sharp facing points that hold plastic bread bags closed. The points tear the bags, so frugal persons can’t re-use them.

And don’t get me started about products that come sealed so tightly in thick plastic, usually melded to a cardboard backing, that you must employ your box cutter, endangering the health of neighboring objects not to mention your various body parts.

I know that these crazy-makers are not Matters of Life and Death. Somehow, we manage to handle Life and Death.

But I just can’t figure out how to neatly wrestle the bookshop’s tenacious price sticker off the lovely new photo album I bought for my friend. Help!

Contact jlindsay@tidewater.net.

PHOTOS/SANDI BARRETT

America’s

Spring Equinox, and Fall Equinox can be seen from the platform.

Radiocarbon dating (carbon-14) at America’s Stonehenge has produced an amazing radiocarbon date of 2,000 B.C.

Stone formations

One of the most impressive stone formations is the Grooved Table, which weighs in at four-and-ahalf tons. The massive size of the table was most likely used for ceremonial purposes. It also has a speaking tube positioned under the table giving it a questionable mysteriousness. In the adjacent Oracle Chamber is the other end of the speaking tube. Someone could speak through this end of the tube and a voice would resound under the Grooved Table giving the impression the table is speaking. It is speculated one ceremony performed here was to keep the sun from setting

forever.

Inside the Oracle Chamber you will find an ancient carving of an antlered deer, secret niches, and stone seating.

The Pattee area

The early 19th-century site history includes the Pattee Area. It is the remains of the basement of the Jonathan Pattee family home. Pattee owned the property from 1801 to 1849. He used the various chambers across the site to harbor runaway slaves as part of the Underground Railroad. Manacles found at the site are on display at the visitors center.

Resident alpacas

Six alpacas have called America’s Stonehenge home since 2002. The alpacas are living their best life here. Ashley, Gina, Dixon, Cindy Lou Who, Barnstormer, and Rocky are ready for a photo opp at the end of your hike. In the spring the alpacas are shorn to their summer look to keep them cool. The shorn fibers are available in the store where you will find skeins of yarn and bird-nesting kits.

If you go

America’s Stonehenge is a fascinating walk in the woods. Whether you are on a quest to discover the historical and astronomical significance of the location or on an educational outing with your grandchildren, it is a wonderful place to visit on a beautiful day.

You can learn more about America’s Stonehenge at http://www.stonehengeusa.com/. The audio mobile app tour that takes you through the numbered sites describes the formations with some interesting history sprinkled into the story.

Subsidized senior housing with a meal program option that

makes us different!

Colony Retirement Home III is congregate housing for seniors. Enjoy nutritious “Home Cooked Meals,” served in our attractive dining room with your neighbors and friends.

At Colony we let you choose!

All apartments at Colony Retirement Homes receive rental assistance through the HUD section 8 program. Rent is 30% of your adjusted monthly income. Rent includes all utilities except phone and cable TV. Call Monday thru Friday, 9am to 5 pm for more information.

Colony Retirement Homes I are garden style studio apartments, located in a country-like setting. A short walk takes you to shopping centers, banks, restaurants and the bus line. A little bit of the country adjacent to the city.

Inside the Oracle Chamber are an ancient carving of an antlered deer, secret niches, and stone seating.

Six alpacas have called

Stonehenge home since 2002.

Massachusetts ranked one of top states for LGBTQ+ retirees

By colin MccanDless contriButing Writer

REGION - October marks the start of LGBT History Month, a time to honor and recognize the achievements of LGBT icons, and Massachusetts has cause to celebrate its own progressive accolade this year after being named the fourth best state in the country for LGBTQ+ retirees.

The 2023 report rankings, published in Retirement Living, examined various factors such as local laws, percentage of the population over 65, percentage of the population that identify as LGBTQ+, average home costs and cost of living.

Legal protections

Massachusetts received high marks for its legal protections including becoming the first state to legalize gay marriage in 2004. The legislature has also enacted laws prohibiting discrimination in employment, housing, credit and public accommodations based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression. It was further recognized for its premier healthcare facilities, which ban healthcare discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity and prohibit insurance companies from denying

transgender transition-related healthcare from coverage.

These protections have taken on particular significance in light of the raft of anti-LGBTQ+ bills that have been introduced and passed in state legislatures nationwide in 2023 threatening to undermine LGBTQ+ rights, highlighted by those banning or restricting gender-affirming care among transgender and non-binary youth. On June 30, the Supreme Court decision in 303 Creative v. Elenis dealt a major blow to LGBTQ+ public accommodations protections when it found that a website designer had a First Amendment right to refuse service to same-sex customers. How future court cases surrounding this issue will play out in individual states remains unclear, but it sets a precedent that could open the door to more LGBTQ+ discrimination.

Advocating for LGBTQIA+ older adults

What is clear is that in Massachusetts, LGBTQ+ retirees have strong advocates striving to make the state a safe and positive place to grow older. The LGBTQIA+ Aging Project, part of Fenway Institute at Fenway Health in Boston, helps elder care services work toward improving inclusivity for LGBTQIA+ old-

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er adults. They collaborate with senior centers to consult on best practices for program planning and outreach engagement to help create welcoming and inclusive programming for LGBTQIA+ older adults. The Aging Project also champions and promotes elder care policy changes that benefit LGBTQIA+ older adults.

“Massachusetts is one of the best states for LGBTQIA+ retirees, based on providing resources and services for LGBTQIA+ older adults,” said Aging Project Director Lisa Krinsky. In her role as director, she has testified in support of LGBTQIA+ older adults, including espousing the creation of a long-term care bill of rights for LGBTQIA+ older adults.

Krinsky noted that 10 years ago Massachusetts created the country’s first statewide commission on LGBTQIA+ aging (Massachusetts LGBT Aging Commission) to address public health, housing and legal issues affecting older LGBTQIA+ adults. Other states have since followed suit in developing their own aging commissions. In 2018, Massachusetts passed a law requiring LGBTQIA+ aging competency training for elder care service providers. The Aging Project created the training modules to fulfill the competency training.

A range of services are available to LGBTQIA+ older adults residing in Massachusetts, with 30 LGBTQIA+ community meal sites and programs offered across the state from Cape Cod to the Berkshires, according to Krinsky. These community programs provide opportunities to meet up with other LGBTQIA+ older adults and establish connections.

“There is a wide variety of social groups and engagements for older LGBTQIA+ groups,” she stated. They range from in-person supper clubs and socials to virtual coffee hours and the Aging Project-hosted Zoom drop-ins. There is also the statewide initiative that created a Bereavement Support Group, led by a licensed clinical social worker specializing in bereavement issues in the LGBTQIA+ community. The group allows LGBTQIA+ individuals to grieve and process losses of a loved one in a

place where they can feel safe.

A trailblazing senior housing endeavor

Awareness of state laws surrounding LGBTQ+ rights can be an important factor in an LGTBQ+ individual or family’s decision on where to retire because not every state offers legal safeguards in areas such as housing. A study conducted by UCLA’s Williams Institute School of Law found that more than 5.4 million LGBTQ adults, or roughly half of the LGBTQ population, live in states without statutory protections against sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination in housing while 7.7 million lack protections in credit.

Meanwhile Massachusetts is set to accomplish another milestone in becoming one of the most desirable places for LGBTQIA+ older adults to retire, developing the first LGBTQIA+ affirming affordable senior housing in New England. Called The Pryde, the 74-housing unit complex situated in Boston’s Hyde Park neighborhood will feature a 10,000 square-foot community center with a learning classroom, library and an art exhibition space. The project is slated to be completed in spring 2024.

“All these advocacy efforts are trying to ensure that across the state that there is parity and safe, welcoming and affirming care for LGBTQIA+ older adults,” explained Krinsky.

Another benefit for LGBTQ+ retirees in Massachusetts: the percentage of the population identifying as LGBTQ+ is 4.2 percent, among the highest in the nation. Additionally, it helps that the current state executive Maura Healey made history in 2022 after becoming the first LGBTQ+ person ever elected governor of Massachusetts.

In a statement provided by the governor’s office, Gov. Healey commented of the designation, “Massachusetts is proud to be a welcoming home for people from all walks of life, especially LGBTQ+ retirees. We are committed to protecting civil rights and freedom, we celebrate diversity, and we are always working hard to make our state more affordable.”

Northborough woman celebrates 106th birthday

By laura hayes contriButing Writer

NORTHBOROUGH – The family of Mildred Wheeler gathered at Whitney Place at Northborough on Aug. 13 for a special milestone – Wheeler’s 106th birthday.

Wheeler said she had no idea what the secret to her longevity was.

But her advice to her grandchildren?

“Stay together,” Wheeler said. Wheeler was one of seven children.

According to her daughter, Judy Draper, the family lived in Worcester for a period before moving to Shrewsbury when she was in sixth grade. Wheeler had four kids who then, in turn, also had their own children.

She said her mother has been a “workaholic” her whole life and has the ability to make friends anywhere. The family also grew up playing cards, and Draper noted her mother’s skills as a cribbage player.

“If you want to play cribbage with her, you’re blessed,” Draper said.

Although the family celebrated on Aug. 13, Wheeler’s official birthday was Aug. 15.

Wheeler had just moved to Whitney Place a month ago from Florida where she lived for over 40 years.

“So, she’s close enough so we can visit. It’s miraculous,” said Draper.

“The family is huge,” Draper said of the people who attended the birthday party.

Some of the family members who attended the birthday party were loved ones that Draper hadn’t seen in a while.

“It’s really awesome to see them,” she said.

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Mildred Wheeler blows out the candles on her birthday cake. She celebrated her 106th birthday in August.

Is the confirmation of things we do not see and the conviction of their reality, perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses.

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- Gwen Stefani (source Marie Claire Magazine)

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Marlborough Mayor Arthur Vigeant Reflects on 30 years in city government

By Maureen sullivan contriButing Writer

MARLBOROUGH – The piles of papers on his desk are all part of the job. Bills and measures, a city’s worth of correspondence, all asking for his attention.

Arthur Vigeant will go through the piles, and comment and sign where needed.

He’s the mayor, the CEO of the city, and these bills and measures –budget requests, transfers, proclamations and plans – keep the city operating.

“It’s a big job,” he said. “You’ve got 21.4 square miles and 43,000 customers.”

Come November, it will become someone else’s job, as Vigeant steps down after 12 years.

Add in his 18 years on the City Council, nine of which he spent as president, and Vigeant will have served in municipal government for 30 years.

He made the announcement in a press release in April.

“I love the city of Marlborough,” said Vigeant in the release. “Serving as mayor of my hometown is the honor of my lifetime. While it will be tough to move on after being involved for so

HOMES FOR HEROES

“It might sound cliché, but when the executive and legislative bodies work together, the people win,” she added.

In 2011, he was elected mayor, succeeding Nancy E. Stevens. Vigeant has since served five more terms, making him the city’s longest-serving mayor.

“I was told when I first took office that this will be the greatest job you’ll ever have,” said Vigeant.

During his time in office, Vigeant said he’s proudest of the city’s AAA bond rating, along with the construction of a new library, senior center and school. The achievement he’ll remember best would be the renovation of World War II Memorial Beach.

“We got more positive comments than any other project,” he said.

many years, I’m ready to start a new chapter in my life with my family and close friends.”

A 30-year career

Vigeant was born and raised in the city, and he currently lives in a house on Brigham Street once owned by his grandmother. He is married to Susan, and they have three children – Tanya, Derek and Kyle – and five grandchildren.

When he was first elected to the council in 1993, Vigeant said, “I had no idea” about the council. He was helped along the way by the council’s secretary, Karen Boule.

“She took me under her wing,” he said.

“I believe the mayor’s many years as a city councilor-at-large taught him the do’s and don’ts for his success and long tenure as mayor,” said Boule. “The key to a mayor’s success has always been linked with his or her cooperation with the City Council, whether easy or hard fought.”

On how he approaches his role as mayor, Vigeant said he took a page from Ronald Reagan – “I don’t want to be the smartest [person] in the room. I want to have smart people in the room with me.”

His executive assistant Patricia Bernard said it’s been an honor working for the mayor and being able to see everything he accomplished during his time in office.

“He’s been a strong mayor with great leadership skills, and has kept his focus, which is keeping Marlborough affordable,” Bernard said. “He is always looking for a more efficient way to get things done, and has never subscribed to the adage ‘because it’s always the way it’s been done,’ that can often be the norm in state and local government.”

Challenges facing the city

As Vigeant reflected on the projects he was proudest of, he also discussed some of the challenges he faced during his tenure.

Vigeant’s biggest challenge during his time as mayor was dealing with the

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Mayor Arthur Vigeant will wrap up a 30-year career in municipal government this fall.

COVID-19 pandemic.

“There wasn’t much in the playbook about that,” he said. “Everyone cooperated ... we pushed our way through. It’s nice to see all [the events] coming back.”

Just below City Hall, Main Street is undergoing a two-year renovation project.

“Main Street’s going to be a disaster for two years, but the results are going to be beautiful,” he said.

Public transportation became a hot topic during discussions of the site plan review for the site of the former Rowe Funeral Home at 57 Main St. The city has no direct access to commuter rail, and limited access to buses.

Vigeant said that if he had a magic wand, he’d have at least one MBTA stop downtown.

Vigeant said the state needs “to step up” and “spend some real money and make a real effort” to overhaul the

Marlborough Mayor Arthur Vigeant

public transportation system.

“You want to do what’s best to get people to Boston,” he said.

Vigeant looks ahead

As he looks ahead to this fall, Vigeant said, “I’m optimistic that we’ll have good candidates and good leaders.”

There are currently four candidates vying to become Vigeant’s successor: current city councilors J. Christian Dumais and Samantha Perlman; Michael Baker; and Patrick Hogan.

“I hope we continue to have good development [projects],” Vigeant said.

Once he becomes a former mayor, Vigeant said he “hopes to relax a little bit.”

“It’s been great being here for 30 years,” he said. “It’s been an interesting time.”

“There’s so much more I want to do,” he added. “There’s always more.”

State honors Wendy Mickel as Commonwealth Heroine

By Maureen sullivan contriButing Writer

WESTBOROUGH – Wendy Mickel is enjoying retirement.

In the months after she left the town clerk’s office, she renovated her longtime residence on Forbes Street and recently became a grandmother for the second time.

“Retirement’s the best thing I’ve ever done,” she said. “I’ve never had this kind of freedom.”

Mickel is making room on her newly-renovated walls for a pair of citations that honor her as a Commonwealth Heroine.

She received the honor on June 23 from the state’s Commission on the Status of Women. Because of the birth of her grandchild, she had to miss the ceremony in Boston.

Mickel was nominated by state reps. Hannah Kane (R-Shrewsbury) and Kate Donaghue, (D-Westborough).

“I was very surprised and honored,” she said.

In addition to her work as town clerk, Mickel was a member of the town’s 275th and 300th anniversa-

Affordable Living at its Best

ry committees, and she is currently a member of the town’s Master Plan Implementation Committee.

Until recently, Mickel was active with the Westborough Food Pantry; she served as treasurer for 25 years, and she helped organize an annual golf tournament to raise funds for the pantry. She decided to step away in order to help her daughter and grandchildren.

“She served the town of Westborough for nearly 30 years, dedicating her life to assisting and supporting the residents of Westborough and making sure the town has been able to hold efficient elections over the years,” according to a press release announcing this year’s Commonwealth Heroines.

“Wendy Mickel’s consistent civic engagement has enhanced the Westborough community tremendously for the past 30 years,” said Kane. “I am so grateful for her years of dedicated public service and her diligence in maintaining effective elections. Her commitment to the town of Westborough is honorable and commendable, and I am deeply appreciative of her volunteer work as treasurer of the Westborough Food Pantry.”

I love the city of Marlborough.

“Serving as mayor of my hometown is the honor of my lifetime.

Making Senior Living Special

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Schedule a private tour, attend a free community event or request more info: (508) 474-8167 | salmonhealth.com/fiftyplus

Pictured above: Allison Karsay, SALMON’s Director of Resident Success & Events welcoming SALMON’s newest resident to the cottages at Medway.